Custom Drums

Custom options include Woods, Tunings and even Design.

As well as the standard options available for our tongue drums, we also invite you to create and customize your own one of a kind instrument. You can work alongside us every step of the way and in creating your personalised Tongue Drum.

To enquire about wood availability, custom options for your instrument or to ask any questions please contact us here.

Tonewoods (Top)

The Tonewood is the piece of wood that is used for the top of the Tongue Drum, and ultimately dictates the overall sound of the instrument. The two key characteristics of a good Tonewood are hardness and density. The balance between these two elements is very important. If the wood is too hard is will absorb the sound waves before they can reach your ear, and on the other hand if the wood is too soft the sound produced will be filled with unwanted overtones and irregular notes.

The perfect wood for the top of a Tongue Drum is one that carries the sound clearly, precisely and with lots of projection. Each species has a different personality and furthermore so does each piece of wood. It is the uniqueness of the wood that truly makes the Tongue Drum different from any other instrument on the planet.

Because of the strict requirements for a clear, controlled sounding tonewood, there are a small number of wood species that can be used. These are Padouk, Purple Heart, Canary and Wenge.

Boxwoods (Sides)

Unlike the tonewoods, almost any species of tree can be used for the sides of a Tongue Drum, as it does not play a huge role in the sound of the instrument. This opens a world of possibilities for creating that special instrument with a personal touch.

As standard we offer Maple and Walnut for the sides of our drums, but the choice is yours. If you are interested in using of a particular type of wood simply email us, we will check our stock and if your chosen wood is not on hand we can order it in for you. Simple.

Here at TUNG we like to offer the player the chance to get involved in the creation of their instrument, be it visuals or sound. When it comes to tuning a Tongue Drum the possibilities can be almost endless.

Each Tongue Drum is designed differently to accommodate a certain style of tuning. The length and thickness of the keys is carefully calculated to produce the desired tone, and thus each instrument has a “sweet spot”. This means that there is a range of notes specific to each drum, that when tuned to them it will sound at it’s best.

We provide a suggested tuning range for each drum, but that is not to say you can’t experiment with it. There have been numerous occasions in which we have taken a risk in tuning a drum to something very “out there”, and it ended up sounding fantastic. We encourage people to come to us with whatever sound they have in mind, and we will try our best to make it work.

A custom Tongue Drum design is something that certain people look for. It makes a drum even more unique and one of a kind. This is something that we can happily work on with you.

If you have a design in mind please let us know. Once we have an idea of what you’re looking for, we will go over the in’s and out’s with you and discuss what’s necessary in achieving the best possible outcome for the instrument, sound wise and visually.

We will then design the drum and send you a printable copy for approval. Once you give us the go-ahead we will start the process of crafting your one of a kind art piece and musical instrument.